It wasn’t like Richard Brehaut opened up his new UCLA playbook, read it and said out loud, “I’m finally home again.”

But close.

The Bruins senior quarterback felt an instant connection to the spread offense new coach Jim L. Mora brought with him to UCLA when he replaced Rick Neuheisel in December.

Yes, it’s dramatically different than the Pistol offense he learned under Norm Chow and Mike Johnson the past two seasons – and even the offense Chow first used as the Bruins’ offensive coordinator during Brehaut’s freshman season – but it bears an uncanny resemblance to the offense Brehaut ran in high school.

“Really, it’s the same plays, almost to a T,” Brehaut said. “Which is kind of funny.”

More importantly, it’s an offense that best takes advantage of Brehaut’s talents, a rapid-strike attack that requires quick reads, a strong arm and puts a premium on getting the ball to players who can make things happen.

And Brehaut likes that.

“If any offense fit my skill set, without a doubt this is it,” Brehaut said. “Throwing the ball, quick decisions, quick throws and getting it into the hands of playmakers. That’s what I love about this offense, and I’m excited about it.”

Whether the familiarity with the new attack gives Brehaut a leg up in the quarterback battle remains to be seen. Mora has opened the job to no less than six players, with Brehaut, fellow senior Kevin Prince and redshirt freshman Brett Hundley considered the three best bets and Jerry Neuheisel, T.J. Millweard and Mike Fafaul all being given consideration.

Not that fighting for his job is anything new. Brehaut and Prince have waged a battle for the job the past two seasons, with each taking turns as the starter over that time.

With a new coaching staff now assessing the position, Brehaut is ready to once again prove his point as the best player. And he welcomes the competition.

“It’s good, it keeps everyone on their feet and it makes sure everyone is at their best every day,” Brehaut said. “With these coaches, nothing else matters – nothing in the past that happened. It’s just about the present.”

Transition time

No doubt the Bruins are making wholesale changes going from Neuheisel to Mora. And if you count back a few years they are essentially installing their fourth new offense and defense over the past five seasons.

“You get used to it, learning on the fly,” Brehaut said.

Now imagine being Mora, who has essentially only known the NFL during his 20-plus-year career and professional football’s 24/7 devotion to the game.

It’s a whole new ballgame in college, where rules and school commitments limit the time he can spend with his players and slow down the pace at which he can install his offense and defense.

It’s an adjustment Mora is working through.

“There’s a learning curve in this whole thing for me as well as the kids,” Mora admitted. “The level I came from, there was no school, no study table, no tutoring.”

Here, with the understanding that school comes first, Mora knows less is sometimes more when it comes to the volume of information he throws at his players.

Five practices into his first spring he is trying to pace himself.

“You have to measure yourself and be judicious in what you install and when you install it,” Mora said. “As coaches we all kind of want to be the next guru, the smartest guy to come up with the latest and greatest. But sometimes you do your players a real disservice if you do that. You’ve got to pace it.”

Making strides

By all rights, freshman cornerback Marcus Rios should be in high school preparing for graduation.

Instead, as an early enrollee, he’s going through his first spring as a college player.

But five practices in, he is already making a move.

“I thought today was by far his best day,” Mora said. “He flashed, he made some plays – today he made a breakthrough and I hope he feels good about it because he deserves it.”

And it’s a far cry from where Rios was just a few days ago, when Mora described him as a deer in the headlights.

“But, if you can imagine, he should be preparing for his senior prom,” Mora said. “And I think the last two or three days he’s made an adjustment.”

Injury update

Wide receivers Darius Bell (quad) and Jerry Rice (collarbone), defensive end Cassius Marsh (ankle) and running back Johnathan Franklin (knee) were all held out of practice.

Vincent Bonsignore is an NFL columnist for the Southern California News Group. Having covered the Los Angeles sports scene for more than two decades, Bonsignore has emerged as one of the leading voices on the Los Angeles Rams and Los Angeles Chargers, the NFL and NFL relocation.

Join the Conversation

We invite you to use our commenting platform to engage in insightful conversations about issues in our community. Although we do not pre-screen comments, we reserve the right at all times to remove any information or materials that are unlawful, threatening, abusive, libelous, defamatory, obscene, vulgar, pornographic, profane, indecent or otherwise objectionable to us, and to disclose any information necessary to satisfy the law, regulation, or government request. We might permanently block any user who abuses these conditions.

If you see comments that you find offensive, please use the “Flag as Inappropriate” feature by hovering over the right side of the post, and pulling down on the arrow that appears. Or, contact our editors by emailing moderator@scng.com.